"On the generation side, the privatization of Government-owned power plants in Luzon and the Visayas have reached the tail end. However, there is a big opportunity for new plants in Mindanao" said AP President and Chief Executive Officer Erramon Aboitiz during the company's annual stockholders meeting held here last Monday.
Aboitiz announced that AP is earmarking some P72 billion for greenfield projects beginning this year. This will include the plan to consider building two new baseload coal-fired plant to expand AP's generation portfolio and help stabilize the power situation in Mindanao.
An option, Aboitiz said, is to expand the 232-megawatt Mindanao coal plant of STEAG State Power, Inc. at the PHIVIDEC Industrial Estate in Misamis Oriental, which is 34-percent owned by Aboitiz Power.
"AP's next strategy is to build a portfolio of assets which will be advantageous for the company. We have rebranded AP as a cleanergy brand, that is, producing power that is also environment friendly, and which truly differentiates us from our competitors," he addressed shareholders during the meeting.
The company reported one of its best years in 2009 with consolidated revenues growing 89 percent to P23 billion, with a net income of P5.7 billion, which represents a 31 percent increase from the previous year.
Earnings from generation units accounted for the bulk of its revenues. The company's generating assets now total 2,066 megawatts (MW) nationwide, a big jump from 1,745 MW in 2009 and 12 times higher when the company was formed in 2007.
The company's distribution utilities also generated a 25-percent growth.
The growth continued for the first quarter of 2010 with the company posting P7.4 billion in earnings, a 1,859-percent increase from the same period in 2009, due to rising prices in the electricity spot market.
Riding on the bullishness in the country's power sector, Aboitiz said the company made fresh capital expenditures of P17.4 billion for this year alone. Such expenditures were allocated for expansion projects of existing generation plants.
This year, APC is set to take over two power barges in Mindanao and complete a 42-MW run-of-river hydropower plant in Sibulan, Davao del Sur. It is also poised to start commercial operations of its 246-MW coal-fired power plant in Toledo City in Cebu as well as the rehabilitation of the long-mothballed Ambuklao hydroplant in Benguet which should bring some 105-MW capacity into the Luzon grid.
Included in the projected projects for the year are a couple of coal-fired plants in Mindanao, several small hydroelectric plants in both Mindanao and in Luzon, expansion of the Pagbilao power plant in Quezon, and possible construction of an energy plant in Subic.
Aboitiz voiced optimism that the growth will continue with the coming of a new administration.
"Business is always upbeat every time there is a new administration," said Aboitiz. "With the economy in good shape, there should be good times ahead for the country.
Impact of hydroplant operation on dissolved oxygen concentration at the Blanchard Dam: Supplemental findings
Valtrede Small Hydro-Plant
Capacity and type of units for small hydroplants: Microcomputer aided design (Studi e ricerche)
